Competitors pick colours and stations

With three weeks to go until Doggett’s 2014, the five competitors picked their starting stations and the colours they will wear during the race.

The competitors drew lots for their colours and stations at Fishmonger’s Hall on Tuesday, June 23rd. The results were:

Station 1/Green:Ben Folkard, 22, from Maidstone in Kent.Ben works for Woods Sliver Fleet and trains with Poplar, Blackwall and District Rowing Club. This will be his first race.

Station 2/Blue:Dominic Coughlin, 23, from Kent.Dominic trains with Medway Towns Rowing Club, and works for Capital Pleasure boats. He is the first in his family to row in Doggett’s, and came sixth in last year’s race.

Station 3/Orange:Louis Pettipher, 23, from Gravesend.Louis also trains with Medway Towns Rowing Club, since he started rowing in November last year. This will be his first time entering the Race for Doggett’s Coat and Badge.

Station 4/Red:Charlie Maynard, 22, from Erith.Charlie is a member of Poplar, Blackwall and District Rowing Club, and came fourth in last year’s race. His ancestor George Maynard won Doggett’s in 1833.

Station 5/Yellow:Harry McCarthy, 22, from Blackheath.Harry rows for Poplar, Blackwall and District Rowing Club, and is a captain for City Cruises. His father Simon won the race in 1984, and Harry came second in last year’s race.

Colin Boag, clerk of the Fishmongers’ Company, said: “As one of the oldest annual sporting events in history, the Race for Doggett’s Coat and Badge is an incredibly important and traditional event for everyone who works on the river. We wish all of this year’s competitors the best of luck.”

Following the race, which is sponsored by Thames Tideway Tunnel, young athletes from Burlington Danes School in Wood Lane, Kingsford School in Beckton, and Burntwood School in Wandsworth, will take part in the “Row4Results Final”, the culmination of the project’s community investment programme, which introduces schools from across London to the sport of indoor-rowing.

Three teams of girls and boys from each of the schools will race using indoor rowing machines at Fishmongers’ Hall Wharf. This Reverse Relay has been organised by London Youth Rowing.